Just when it was starting to look like the New York Rangers had gotten it together, J.T. Miller and company crumbled anew on Tuesday night, losing to the visiting Carolina Hurricanes at Madison Square Garden in New York, 3-0.
The Rangers entered the meeting with Carolina on the heels of a three-game win streak, including back-to-back overtime victories over the Edmonton Oilers and Seattle Kraken to finish a road trip. But the moment they returned home, it appeared as though the Rangers had lost their powers. There's something in the Big Apple that New York has to figure out before, as they remain winless at MSG in the 2025-26 NHL season through six games there.
Rangers captain JT Miller is certainly not happy with how things are going for his team this season overall.
“It's not really cute anymore. It's been 14 games,” Miller said after the loss to Carolina, per Mollie Walker of The New York Post.
The 32-year-old Miller also blamed himself for the Rangers' struggles.
“I need to be better and to lead better for these guys. Just not acceptable at home to not get the job done at the end of the day, whether you play well or not,” the veteran shared (via Walker).
The Hurricanes got to a 1-0 lead in the first period with a goal in the man advantage by Nikolaj Ehlers. They extended their lead to 2-0 in the second period on an even-strength goal by Sean Walker. Another insurance goal came for Carolina in the third frame, as Seth Jarvis put one in for an empty-netter with under two minutes left in regulation.
New York's offense simply couldn't get anything going despite some great opportunities. While the Hurricanes went 1-for-3 on the power play, the Rangers were held scoreless in three power-play shifts. The Rangers were outshot in the game, 32-25, but they also had 10 high-danger shot attempts to nine by Carolina.
On the season, the 6-6-2 Rangers are second-to-last in the entire league with an average of just 2.21 goals per game, which is also not doing their otherwise solid defense any favors. New York, which has the NHL's second-best average of 2.43 goals allowed per game, will get back on the road for their next game versus the Detroit Red Wings on Friday. Their next chance to get win No. 1 at home will be on Saturday against the New York Islanders.
